Welcome back to the club, Southern California.
The Trojans reached No. 5 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll, released Sunday, marking their first appearance in the Top 5 since hitting No. 4 in September 2017. They jumped two spots after an epic 48-45 victory over crosstown rival UCLA on Saturday night.
The top four remained unchanged, with Georgia receiving 62 of 63 first-place votes to stay atop the poll. No. 2 Ohio State earned the other first-place vote and was followed by Michigan and TCU. All four programs are 11-0, but Michigan and TCU both needed last-minute field goals to stay undefeated.
Following USC were LSU, Clemson, Alabama, Tennessee and Oregon to round out the Top 10.
Tennessee dropped four spots after Saturday’s stunning 63-38 loss to South Carolina, in which the Gamecocks scored the most points by an unranked team against a Top 5 team in the history of the poll, according to the Associated Press.
The Volunteers weren’t alone with their precipitous fall.
With losses Saturday, UCF plunged eight spots to No. 25. Ole Miss slipped six spots to No. 20 and North Carolina fell five places to 18.
The week’s big climbers were Notre Dame, up five slots to No. 13, as well as two teams that rose four spots — Kansas State (No. 15) and Florida State (No. 16).
Out of the poll this week was Oklahoma State, replaced by Big 12 rival Texas at No. 24.
–Field Level Media
